Teach Your Child to Ride a Bike in One Day
Our family is a bike riding family. We all love to ride bikes, whether it is along the hike and bike trail near our home or to grab dinner in our neighborhood. We have had our children on bikes from the moment our pediatricians said their little necks could handle it. They both started out in the little bike seats that attach to the front of the bike (Google iBert bike seat), which makes for better interaction than stuffing them in a seat behind your butt. I also have a cargo bike with a big wooden box up front that has a bench and shoulder straps for both kids.
Our older daughter already transitioned into and out of the tag-along bike that bolts on to the back of my bike. When it was time to teach her how to ride her own bike, I was lucky to be directed by another DuckTV father to this great REI tutorial on how to teach children to ride a bike: http://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/teach-child-to-ride-a-bike.html
I highly recommend this foolproof method. I have used it now to successfully teach my own child and two of my nephews how to ride, each in less than a day. I urge you to fully read the article and watch the video. I will give you a few extra tips from my experience.
- The first step is having the child learn how balance on a bike. If you have a balance bike, this is perfect for the job. No balance bike? No need to go out and buy one. Just take the pedals off of the child's bike as explained in the video. The key to learning balance is getting some speed. I like to find a driveway with a nice little rise in it, just a pitch of a few degrees. That little bit of speed they pick up on the hill allows them to pick up the balance much easier.
- Once they can go down that pitched driveway or other tiny decline and turn a corner without problem, they are ready for pedals.
- There are all kinds of products out there that you can attach to the seat stem or back of the bike to give support to the learning rider. But, I have found none are any better than a hand on the back of the seat providing just a bit of support. It shouldn't take more than a handful of tries once they have the balance down.
- Make sure they can start on their own, stay in a small lane, and come to a complete controlled stop on their own before even considering taking the child for a ride on anything other than bike path.
- Keep it fun. Don't try to practice when they are tired. Always wear a helmet. If the adults are always wearing bike helmets, the kids will follow suit. Lead by example.
Now get out there and get your family riding!
